1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a tilt-type sunroof installed mainly in an automobile.
The present invention also relates to a mechanism for supporting a detachable type sunroof panel, and more particularly to a mechanism for supporting a sunroof panel detachably and so as to be capable of being tilted up in an opening formed in a roof of a vehicle.
The present invention also relates to a detachable type sunroof apparatus, and more particularly to a detachable type sunroof apparatus having a deflector blade for suppressing the entrainment of the wind into a vehicle compartment when a panel is removed.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional sunroof for an automobile, there is a type in which an opening provided in a roof of a vehicle is made capable of being selectively opened or closed by a sunroof panel. As for its opening and closing operation, there are a slide type in which the sunroof panel is slid with respect to the roof and a tilt type in which the sunroof panel is tilted in a vertical direction. As compared to the slide type, the tilt type does not require a large installation space and its structure is simple, so that the tilt type has been used as a simple sunroof (e.g., refer to JP-UM-B-7-46572).
A sunroof apparatus has already been put to practical use in which a sunroof panel made of glass, for instance, is fitted in an opening provided in a roof of an automobile. In this sunroof apparatus, detachable hinge mechanisms are provided between a front edge of the sunroof panel and a corresponding portion of the opening, and a detachable toggle latch mechanism is provided between a rear edge of the sunroof panel and a corresponding portion of the opening, thereby arranging the sunroof panel to be detachable and capable of being tilted up.
Such a mechanism for supporting a detachable type sunroof panel is disclosed in, for instance, JP-UM-A-63-195917 which is constructed such that a male member fixed to the sunroof panel side and having a downwardly convex curved surface is engaged in an insertion hole formed in a female member fixed to the roof side.
A sunroof apparatus is disclosed in, for instance, JP-UM-A-63-195917 which is constructed such that a sunroof panel made of glass, for instance, is fitted in an opening provided in a roof of an automobile. In this sunroof apparatus, detachable hinge mechanisms are provided between a front edge of the sunroof panel and a corresponding portion of the opening, and a detachable toggle latch mechanism is provided between a rear edge of the sunroof panel and a corresponding portion of the opening, thereby arranging the sunroof panel to be detachable and capable of being tilted up.
On the other hand, in the sunroof apparatus, it is known that a deflector blade is fitted along a front edge of the opening so as to suppress the traveling wind from being entrained into the vehicle compartment when the vehicle travels with the opening in the roof open.
In the above-described tilt-type sunroof, since it is unnecessary to provide a complex mechanism such as a sliding up/down mechanism used in the slide-type sunroof, hinge mechanisms for the sunroof panel and a lifting mechanism using links are directly attached to peripheral edges of the opening. For example, bracket portions are provided by working and forming portions of a roof member (such as a roof panel) corresponding to edge portions of the opening in the roof, and fixing portions of the respective mechanisms are fixed to the bracket portions.
However, in a sunroof assembly line, the fixing portions of the respective mechanisms are, for instance, welded to the roof member-side bracket portions, and the sunroof panel is subsequently assembled to them, so that the operation in the line has been troublesome. Further, since positioning with respect to the opening is affected by the positional accuracy in the attachment of the hinge mechanisms and the lifting mechanism, there has been a problem in that its adjustment operation also becomes troublesome.
According to the conventional supporting mechanism, the female member is an integrally molded piece made of a synthetic resin, and it has been difficult to mold the insertion hole for receiving the curved male member with high accuracy. In particular, if the fitting of the male member into the insertion hole becomes tight due to such as the occurrence of deformation of the curved surface of the male member formed by press working a steel plate, the attachment and detachment of the sunroof panel become difficult. In a worst case, it can become impossible to detach the sunroof panel.
In contrast, if the fitting of the female member and the male member is set to be loose, faulty installation occurs between the sunroof panel and the roof, possibly resulting in the occurrence of buffeting and air leak noise during traveling.
However, essentially, the primary consideration of the detachable sunroof apparatus such as the one disclosed in the aforementioned publication is that it can be manufactured at low cost. Accordingly, its structure is generally made extremely simple. For this reason, if the ratio of the cost of the deflector blade to the overall apparatus is taken into consideration, it has been, in a way, difficult to say that it is realistic to apply to the detachable type sunroof apparatus the construction of such a deflector blade of the conventional type that is installed on the sunroof apparatus accommodated underneath the roof by being power driven.